BEREA, Ohio — Originally, when Cleveland Browns tight end David Njoku suffered a broken wrist in a Week 2 win over the New York Jets at MetLife Stadium in his home state of New Jersey, it was reported that the surgical route would be a longer road to recovery, but ultimately, that proved not to be the case.
Following Wednesday’s practice, Njoku revealed that after trying to have his wrist injury heal on its own, he underwent surgery to repair the damage.
“Initially, I opted not to, and after talking about it with my family and thinking about it, I decided to have surgery,” Njoku said.
“I’m very impatient. When I want something, I want it right now, and without surgery, it looked like it was making me wait a little bit, and I didn’t have time for that.
“The human body’s a very interesting thing. No matter what anybody says, it’s going to heal the way it heals. With that being said, I was very impatient with waiting and I wanted progress now, so I chose eventually to have the surgery, and it worked out perfectly. It healed amazingly fast, and here I am.”
Njoku was designated for return from injured reserve on Wednesday, and he went through practice before addressing the media.
With Sunday’s game against the Miami Dolphins at FirstEnergy Stadium in Cleveland fast approaching, Njoku will try and prove that he can fill a role on the team and help the offense get across the goal line at a more consistent clip.
“Really, for me, I’ve just got to control what I can control and show the coaches that I know what I’m doing, first and foremost, and I can do it to the highest speed, to my greatest ability and just keep working on what I can improve,” Njoku said.
“I think the sky’s the limit. I’m a big body. I jump a little high, so I’m just here for whatever the team needs.”
Until now, Njoku has not dealt with major injury concerns in his professional career, as he played in 34 straight games since joining the Browns via a first-round pick in the 2017 NFL Draft out of the University of Miami (Florida).
This year, Njoku has four receptions in seven targets for 37 yards and one touchdown, which came in the Browns’ 43-13 loss to the Tennessee Titans in the 2019 regular-season opener at FirstEnergy Stadium in Cleveland on Sunday, September 8.
And Njoku is “very motivated” to get back to work after missing eight straight games.
“110 percent, very excited,” Njoku said.